Let It Go
by DarkMoon1301
Summary: It really was a breathtakingly beautiful painting, and Caroline could see how it had ended up here. It brought her peace, a very calming peace, when everything around her seemed to be just the opposite.


**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or Disney. **

**Well, I really am in love with the song 'Let It Go' from Disney's Frozen, and it spoke to me in a Klaroline sort of way! I hope you enjoy!**

**Much love & cupcakes,**

**DM1301**

_It's funny how some distance  
>Makes everything seem small<br>And the fears that once controlled me  
>Can't get to me at all<em>

_-Indina Menzel, 'Let It Go', Disney's Frozen_

Caroline was sitting on a bench staring at a beautiful landscape. There was a lake, crystal blue and sparkling, painted so perfectly that Caroline could almost smell the water. The lake had trees around it, and the different shades of green made the trees seem moving and alive. Flowers dotted the landscape, different hues of pinks, purples, and blues combining to make a beautiful rainbow in the grass. Caroline could almost feel the wind blowing through her hair, could almost hear the birds singing. It really was a breathtakingly beautiful painting, and Caroline could see how it had ended up here. It brought her peace, a very calming peace, when everything around her seemed to be just the opposite.

Caroline had wanted to escape everyone and everything in her life for a while. She'd managed to graduate college, with honors of course, and had decided to take a break from life before beginning anew as a college graduate in the real world. Her mother was still the sheriff of Mystic Falls, and Elena, Damon, and Stefan were still caught in a never-ending love triangle that just gave Caroline a headache. Elena kept managing to get herself into trouble, and Damon and Stefan always saved her. Somehow, Elena was becoming more and more like Damon with each passing year, and it was driving Caroline crazy. Caroline still clung to every bit of her humanity – partying, graduating, living her life as though she normally would. Elena, on the other hand, was more into getting blood drunk off sorority girls and fraternity boys and compelling them to forget it. And even though Caroline stuck with her through everything, Elena was there for Caroline less and less. When Tyler left her, Elena barely batted an eye. When Bonnie left to deal with being the anchor to the other side, no one comforted Caroline, even though she had lost her best friend again just like everyone else. Sure she had her mom, but she wouldn't always have her. Time always had a way of changing things.

Time. What a curious thing. Caroline had all the time in the world now; time to see new places, meet new people, try new things. But even with all her time, Caroline found herself stuck in the past. She constantly found herself remembering her high school graduation night, when someone promised to be her last love. Klaus. She hadn't seen him since he had left, but he still made sure to send her birthday gifts and the like. One year it was a painting. Another it was jewelry. One year, after her mother had had an accident and couldn't work for a while, she had even found her tuition paid for. One guess as to who had that amount of money to just spend willy-nilly. He was thousands of miles away in New Orleans, and yet he still took the time to make sure she felt special and loved. He never forgot her, but still gave her the distance she craved as a young woman in college. He gave her room to grow, and grow she did. She learned that not everything was black and white; there was gray, and there always would be. Everyone toed the line between good and bad, occasionally crossing the border. She learned that you can't judge someone based on their past, only the here and now. After all, in the past Elena had been sweet and kind, and Caroline had been vain and naïve. Now look at them! So maybe Stefan was right, and Klaus wasn't all bad. He had spared Tyler. When she had asked Tyler to love her more than he hated Klaus, he had barely hesitated. Yet time and time again, Klaus spared Tyler because he loved her more than he hated Tyler. Caroline, over the years, slowly came to the realization that Klaus was everything she wanted. He was charming, handsome, gentlemanly, daring, sexy, yet he wouldn't hesitate to protect her, to defend her until the end.

So here Caroline was, at the State Hermitage in Russia, starting at a landscape, willing it to give her the answers she was looking for. What was keeping her from Klaus? Her friends and family were important to her, but if they loved her wouldn't they want her to be happy? Would Klaus even still want her? She was just small town girl Caroline Forbes. But if she was being honest, she had changed too. She was more confident, and it showed. She stood up for herself. She fought back. She wasn't a perfect little girl anymore; she was a strong, independent woman. As she analyzed her feelings, every fear she had seemed to shrink away. Why shouldn't she be happy? It wasn't as if Elena's opinion should influence hers; clearly Elena didn't care about Caroline's opinion if she kept chasing Damon. Why shouldn't she just do something for herself for once? Take a chance? Wasn't that what life was about? Caroline smiled at the painting. Yes, yes it was. It was Caroline's life. Not her mother's, not Bonnie's, not Elena's. Caroline. She stood up, and with a last glance at the painting, left the museum, letting go of her fears and doubts. She was going to find out exactly what life had to offer her.

She was going to New Orleans.


End file.
